A collection of tools used to develop for a
particular hardware target, or to work with a particular data
format (thus `the Crusoe development toolchain', or the `DocBook
toolchain'). Often used in the context of building software on one
system which will be installed or run on some other device; in that
case the chain of tools usually consists of such items as a
particular version of a compiler, libraries, special headers, etc.
May also be used of text-formatting, page layout, or multimedia
tools which render from some markup to a variety of production
formats. Differs from `toolkit' in that the former implies a
collection of semi-independent tools with complementary functions,
while `toolchain' implies that each of the parts is a serial stage
in a rather tightly bound pipeline. Seems to have become current
in early 1999 and 2000; now common.